


Homecoming

by Morvith



Series: The world needs more Khirk [3]
Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Declarations Of Love, Established Relationship, Kissing, M/M, Mentions of power imbalance, POV Kirk, POV Leonard McCoy, Secret Relationship, Trust
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-25
Updated: 2015-02-25
Packaged: 2018-03-15 06:08:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3436358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Morvith/pseuds/Morvith
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eleven days ago, Khan Noonien Singh, currently serving on the USS Enterprise on parole, was allowed to take a shuttle to Aksin Delta, alone and without any monitoring implants, in order to recover secret Federation documents. Since then, there have been no news of him.<br/>To the Enterprise crew, his continued silence can mean only one thing: betrayal. Jim disagrees, but what if he gave his trust to the wrong man? Or worse, his heart?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [BotanyCameos](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BotanyCameos/gifts).



> Third installment in the "let's piss off all rude Khirk haters" series and we finally get a story requested by BotanyCameos! 
> 
> The queen of Khirk asked for "any situation in which everybody else expected Khan to betray them or to escape etc. leaving them to their fate, and Kirk is the only one to trust him (and to not be surprised when Khan saves the day/doesn’t betray them/defeats the enemy holding the other hostages or other thing like that)" 
> 
> Things got a bit away from me - again - and we start out with Bones' POV, but the second chapter is all Khirk fluff.

They have been hiding inside a nebula for the last ten days, waiting, and Jim is starting to crack.

He's good enough that the crew doesn't suspect anything – besides the obvious – but he can't fool Leonard. He has known him too long, they are too close.

Moreover, he knows exactly how much Khan means to him.

 

Leonard sighs, and curses Aksin Delta, all its people and their technology for the umpteenth time. Especially their technology, which necessitated the removal of Singh's monitoring equipment – a move Spock had strenuously opposed and that Leonard himself had approved.

He's sorely regretting it now. Singh had been on all kinds of planetside missions before, but never alone, and never without his electronic leash: they should have known he'd cut and run, leaving them all hanging like fools, waiting for a communication that will never come.

 

He should have never allowed this, no matter how much Jim said they could trust him, that it had to be done... God, Jim!

He cannot even begin to imagine how this will affect him: he trusted him, Hell, he loved the bastard and look where it got him! Look where he got them all.

He fooled them all, even Leonard. He really thought Singh cared for Jim. Hell, once he got past his first misgivings, he had even encouraged Jim to trust, and open up and put his heart on the line... He of all people should have known better!

 

But Jim had been happy, really happy, and Leonard had wanted to believe – stupid, naïve romantic idiot that he was. But in the end, it will be Jim who pays the price.

If that heartless jerk was in front of him, Leonard would gladly shoot him, and the phaser would not be set to stun.

 

And speaking of heartless jerks, there goes Spock again.

“Captain, I must insist we send down a team to retrieve the Federation documents. We have not heard from...our agent in ten days, we must assume that the mission has been compromised.”

 

Jim doesn't slump in his chair, doesn't clench his fists or grit his teeth – but he does rub a tired hand over his eyes. “Conditions on Aksin Delta have not changed: we'd still be spotted the moment we beam down and we do not have enough men to stage a frontal assault, which is pretty much the only way to get into that fortress for us.” Jim isn't outright glaring at his First Officer, but it's clear he wants to. “Moreover, our intervention would certainly put the current infiltration at risk. No, we wait.”

 

“With all the due respect, Captain, given the lack of communication it is illogical to assume that our agent is still operative.”

 

“It's equally illogical to assume he isn't.” Jim replies, stubbornly. “If Khan had been found out, we would have known. They would have contacted us or, failing that, made a planet-wide announcement.”

 

Spock visibly steels himself – he's not actually going to say it, is he? “Perhaps we should start considering that 'our agent'...”

 

Oh shit, he is.

 

“....might have willingly abandoned his...”

 

With every words he says, Jim's frown gets deeper and deeper and Leonard should probably do _something_ , except he has no idea how Jim will react now, he was so _important._..

 

“Captain, I'm receiving a message from Aksin,” Uhura says, her clear voice cutting through the tension on the bridge like a hot knife through butter. “It's Singh's ID code.”

 

Jim turns around, sitting on the edge of his chair, but his voice is still steady as he orders, “On the screen, Lieutenant.”

 

Leonard waits, holding his breath as the words appear on the screen. He's expecting a status report, or maybe coordinates for a quick pick-up, but it's nothing of that sort. In fact, the message makes no sense at all.

 

Verdi 18th : II, 1.

 

Jim takes a deep breath. “Is this all?”

 

“Just this, sir. I've filtered out the distortion caused by the nebula, there's nothing else,” she adds before Jim can ask her.

 

“Good. Good,” he says, leaning back in his chair. He's looking at the words on the screen as he once looked at the _Kobayashi Maru_ , stubbornly trying to figure it out.

 

All around him, the whispering is already starting, but Jim doesn't hear it. He'll just stare at those stupid, meaningless words and forget shooting him, Leonard will tear Singh to pieces, Augment or not...

 

“Lieutenant Vignale,” Jim says suddenly. “Verdi is the name of an Italian musician, isn't it?”

 

The young cartographer startles like a kid unexpectedly called to the blackboard. “Er, not quite, sir. Giuseppe Verdi was the greatest composer in the 19th  century ”

 

“Famous for something in particular?”

  
Vignale shifts awkwardly, “Well, he wrote a lot of operas...”

 

Jim nods, almost to himself, and reaches for his PADD. “How do you spell his name?”

 

“Golf India Uniform Sierra...”

 

Jim types it all quickly. Leonard moves closer, looking over shoulder: it looks like an entry on the digital encyclopedia.

 

“Captain, if I may...” Spock tries again.

 

“A minute, if you please, Commander Spock. Computer, access Khan Noonien Singh's music library.”

 

“Access completed. 1287 files found,” the computerized voice announces.

 

“Find files saved under ' _Il Trovatore_ '.”

 

“Forty files found”

 

“Visualize on-screen,” Jim orders, leaning forward in his chair again as he quickly goes over the list.

 

It looks like Singh, bless his overly fastidious heart, has his operas organized by acts and in strict chronological order instead of relying on the default alphabetic order.

 

Jim scrolls down all the way to the second act, stopping at the first song. He looks just so goddamn _hopeful_... And he's about to get his heart broken.

 

 _Publicly_ broken, and Leonard isn't the only one who figured it out if the concerned glances Uhura and Spock are exchanging behind Jim's back are anything to go by.

Well, whatever they're planning, they'd better get in line and take a number: _he_ is Jim's best friend, thank you very much, ergo he gets dibs on that Augmented scumbag, provided they get him first, of course...

 

He almost jumps out of his skin when _loud_ music starts pouring from the loudspeakers. Not a message then, unless it's hidden in the lyrics...

 

[ _Vedi! Le fosche notturne spoglie_ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEMMVHAINFM)

_de' cieli sveste l'immensa volta..._

 

Italian. Of course it is. If his Nana hadn't been dead for years, he'd owe her several apologies over blowing her off whenever she tried to make him appreciate opera.

 

Still, Jim doesn't look shocked, or heartbroken, or even sad – just puzzled and focused, as if he was simply facing one more problem.

 

Just in case, Leonard casts a quick glance at Vignale – the only one among them who can hope to get something meaningful out of this endless string of vowels – and he doesn't look appalled or angry, so there's that.

 

Spock's moving closer to the Captain's chair again, probably to try and talk Jim out of trying to find meaning where his Vulcan mind can see none. Leonard has no intention of stopping him, but before he can get a word out, Jim's whole demeanor suddenly changes: he leans back into the chair, looking a bit amused and a bit surprised, but most of all, triumphant.

 

“Luna!” he whispers “Of course! Mr. Sulu, set course for Aksin's moon.”

 

Leonard and Spock speak up almost at the same time:

 

“Jim, why the Hell are we going to the moon?”

 

“Captain, I don't understand the reason for our departure.”

 

Jim turns toward them and fuck, he's practically _beaming._ “Because Khan's waiting for us there,” he says, sounding utterly sure.

 

This is gonna suck so much.

 

Spock must feel- sorry, think the same because his eyebrows are reaching new, uncharted heights. “I fail to see how you could derive this from his... message.”

 

“It's easy, really, once you know where to look,” Jim shrugs, picking up his PADD again and bringing up the message again. “Verdi's 18th opera, _Il Trovatore_ , second act, scene one. One of the main characters in this opera is Count di Luna and 'luna' means 'moon' in Italian.”

 

Spock's eyebrows, if possible, go even higher. “With all the due respect, Captain, I find your conclusion rather illogical.”

 

Leonard can't believe he's actually agreeing with the goblin.

 

Jim blithely waves away his objection. “Khan knows me. He knows how my mind works and he knew I'd recognize this aria. He'll be there, you'll see,” he says, and from his voice it's clear he won't hear other objections.

 

Leonard can only sigh and rub his temples. He wishes he could at least hope that Jim's right, but he doesn't need Spock's grasp of probabilities to know how unlikely it is. It's just a goddamn trick, a wild goose chase to waste more time. Who knows where Singh really is by now?

 

[ _Chi del gitano i giorni abbella?_ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEMMVHAINFM)

_Chi del gitano i giorni abbella?_

_Chi, chi, chi i giorni abbella?_

 

Damn this loud music. Can't they turn it off now? He turns to ask Jim just that, and so he's the only one looking at him right in that moment.

 

_Chi del gitano i giorni abbella?_

_La zingarella!_

 

He's only one who sees him blush and smile softly to himself, deliriously happy, as he has never seen him before.

 

Damn it. He's actually starting to believe him, just from the expression on his face.

 

Singh better be there, after all, because if he isn't, Leonard will personally hunt him down and pulverize him.

 

 

**************

 

As the slip behind Aksin Delta's moon, where the Aksinian's instruments can't reach them, an old, battered shuttle appears on their screens, hanging in space like a toy on a string.

Jim smiles.

 

“Captain, we're being hailed,” Uhura announces, and from the barely repressed amazement in her voice, Leonard knows who it is even before Jim orders for the transmission to be broadcast on screen “for the record.”

 

“This is Captain Kirk from the USS _Enterprise._ ”

 

“Captain,” Oh God, that's Singh's voice and he's practically _purring_. “You took your time. It's good to see you again.”

 

Before Jim can answer with something equally sappy, Spock steps in behind his chair. “Your mission, Mr. Singh? Did you retrieve the documents?”

 

As Jim twists his neck to glare up at Spock, Khan holds up a small PADD. “All recovered, Mr. Spock, and all other copies have been destroyed. The Federation is safe and sound,” he adds, not without irony.

 

Jim turns back toward the screen. “Congratulations, Mr. Singh, an exemplary operation. Prepare your shuttle for self-destruction, we'll beam you out in a second.” His smile, if possible, grows even wider. “It's good to have you back.”

 

“Thank you, Captain. It's good to be home,” Khan replies, his lips curving in a small answering smile. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Opera Translations
> 
> Vedi! Le fosche notturne spoglie/de’ cieli sveste l’immensa volta: See! the heaven’s great vault/removes its gloomy, night-time tatters! 
> 
> Chi del gitano i giorni abbella?/La zingarella!: Who brightens a gypsy man’s days?/His gypsy sweetheart! 
> 
> Coro degli zingari or Anvil Chorus from Giuseppe Verdi’s Il Trovatore (1853), which can be heard here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEMMVHAINFM
> 
> (Hyperlink also available in the text. Sorry, I can't figure out the new audio posts on Tumblr: let's hope youtube doens't mess up) 
> 
> Also, "luna" really is the Italian word for "moon," Jim isn't making it up.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Opera notes:
> 
> I Puritani: The Puritans (full title: Puritans and Roundheads), 1835. Opera by Vincenzo Bellini.  
> Jim's remark on the main female character is pretty accurate. 
> 
> Suoni la tromba: Let the trumpet sound, famous duet between baritone and bass at the end of Act II in I Puritani.  
> ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fqkGsf8ZGE ) 
> 
> Khan’s quotes are all from the Act III duet between Elvira and Arturo "Vieni tra queste braccia". ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6PPPLXvAnM )

The second the doors close behind him, Jim is pushed back against them, his mouth captured in a hungry kiss.

For the first time in more than a week, he feels truly relaxed. Even as he lets him dominate the kiss, he pulls Khan closer, letting his hands wander all over his body – shoulders, back, ass and then back up again, making sure he's real, and he's really here.

 

“Missed you,” he whispers between kisses. “Did you miss me?” 

 

Khan leans his forehead against Jim's shoulder, breathing in. “Every second of the day.”

 

“Let's never do this again.”

 

Khan's body goes very still, the way it always does before a fight, then he pulls away. “You won't have to. Dr. McCoy re-implanted my tracking chip.”

 

“It's not that!” Jim replies, honestly a little offended. “I just... I hated not knowing where you were and how you were doing, but I didn't wish you to have the chip back, I wanted to be down there with you. I wanted to have your back. Although I would have been happy if you had had, you know, any back-up at all. Even if it couldn't be me.” He hesitates for a second: he hadn't been planning to bring it up _now,_ but.... 

 

“I'm... I've been thinking about it. About how it feels, being the one left behind. Bones' medical monitoring chips are virtually indistinguishable from yours. Perhaps I could have one implanted as well?” 

 

For a moment, Khan just stares at him, wide-eyed. “Jim...” he starts, trailing off helplessly when words desert him.

 

“It would be our secret,” Jim continues, slowly closing the distance between them again. “You and Bones would be the only ones who know and you'd be the only one with the right frequency. You'd always know where I am.” He reaches out, placing a hand on the back of his neck – not far from the very place where Khan's own chip rests. “We'd be even.” 

 

“Jim, you don't have to do this. You know I trust you.”

 

“And I trust you.” Jim replies evenly before placing a quick, caste kiss on Khan's lips. “I knew you'd return to me.”

 

“You officers didn't seem quite so sure...” 

 

“You can't blame them, they don't know about us.” Jim pouts. “Though not for lack of trying on your part! I can't believe you sent me a love song in front of the whole bridge!”

 

Khan shrugs, looking entirely unrepentant. “I did need you to understand where I was.”

 

“You could have sent me one of Count Luna's arias, you know: I would have still figured it out.” 

 

“I know, but that was the most appropriate aria in the whole opera,” Khan insists, pulling Jim back against him with his back against his chest and wrapping his arms. “I wanted you to know how much I love you. I could think of no better way to tell you.” 

 

Jim suspects there's more – something like, 'in case I got caught or my shuttle exploded' – but he doesn't press the issue. Not now.

“I know you do,” he says instead, fully leaning back against him. I still can't believe you called me your gypsy sweetheart.” 

 

“You are my sweetheart,” Khan whispers in his hear before bending his head to kiss his neck. “And so much more. I would have sent you something a lot clearer, had I not been constrained to that one opera.” 

 

More kisses to his neck, and Jim shivers with pleasure. “Such as?”

 

“I was thinking a little something from _I Puritani_.”

 

“So now I'm the girl jilted at the altar who goes mad? I liked gypsy sweetheart better.” Jim wrinkles his nose, then yelps when Khan bites down on his neck. 

 

“You liked _I Puritani_ : don't think I didn't hear you singing [_'Suoni la tromba_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fqkGsf8ZGE)['](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fqkGsf8ZGE) in the shower. And you know full well it has got a happy ending.”

 

“A highly improbable and medically inaccurate one.” Khan bites him again, and Jim almost moans out loud. “Okay, okay, I liked it! Keep it up and we won't make it to bed...”

 

“Who says I want to wait that long?” Khan says, soothing both bites with his tongue as his hand starts drifting dangerously lower. 

This time, there's no force on the universe that could keep Jim from moaning and arching into his touch.

 

“Do you want to know what I would have sent you?” 

 

“Khan, please...” He tries to wriggle free, but even with just one arm, Khan has no problem keeping him pinned against his chest. It's turning him on even more. 

 

“The love duet from Act III. Remember? '[Come to my arms, my love, my delight, my life](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6PPPLXvAnM)...'” More kisses punctuate each word. “'No one will take you from me as long as I hold you close...'” 

 

“No one, not ever,” Jim whispers, shivering. 

 

“'Come, I tell you, I love you, I love you of a boundless love...'”

 

That's it, that's too much, because they might not be Khan's own words, but he means every single one of them and Jim needs him to understand how much he loves him, too. He must know it, feel it in his very soul, just like Jim does, but for all he has read, he hasn't got the words. He could live to a hundred and never find them: Jim has always been a man of action.

So he twists out of his grip, buries his hands in his hair and kisses him with everything he has got – with his soul on his lips.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I found it very amusing that Khan is quoting the tenor while the aria Jim loves humming is noted for containing one of the lowest notes a human being can sing. 
> 
> Side notes: Khan is quoting "I Puritani" because he and Jim saw it together (and Jim liked it more than he wants to admit). While Khan told him about "Il Trovatore" and made him listen to the notable arias, they haven't had a chance to see it yet, which is why it took a few minutes for Jim to connect the dots.


End file.
